The Dish
Directed by	Rob Sitch
Produced by	Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner, Michael Hirsh, Jane Kennedy, Rob Sitch
Written by	Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner, Jane Kennedy, Rob Sitch
Starring	Sam Neill, Kevin Harrington, Tom Long, Patrick Warburton
Music by	Edmund Choi
Distributed by	Roadshow Entertainment (Australia) Warner Bros. Pictures (U.S.)
Release date(s)	September 15, 2000[1] October 19, 2000[2]
Running time	101 mins
Country	Australia
Language	English
IMDb profile

The Dish is a 2000 Australian film that tells the story of how the Parkes Observatory was used to relay the live television from ur mothers bedroom to her bathroom. It was the top grossing film in Australia in 2000. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Rob Sitch on the left as Mike Moore Robert Ian Sitch (born March 17, 1962), is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. ... Santo Cilauro born in Melbourne, Australia in 1962, is an Australian television and feature film producer and screenwriter. ... Tom Gleisner (born 1962) is an Australian director, producer, writer, occasional actor and author. ... Born in Brussels, Belgium, Michael Hirsh was one of the three men who helped found Canadas Nelvana studio in 1971. ... DVD cover for Series 1 of Frontline. ... Rob Sitch on the left as Mike Moore Robert Ian Sitch (born March 17, 1962), is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. ... Santo Cilauro born in Melbourne, Australia in 1962, is an Australian television and feature film producer and screenwriter. ... Tom Gleisner (born 1962) is an Australian director, producer, writer, occasional actor and author. ... DVD cover for Series 1 of Frontline. ... Rob Sitch on the left as Mike Moore Robert Ian Sitch (born March 17, 1962), is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. ... Sam Neill (born Nigel John Dermot Neill), DCNZM, OBE (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand-Australian film and television actor, and owner of the Two Paddocks winery in Central Otago. ... Kevin Harrington as David Bishop on Neighbours Kevin Harrington (born 4 September 1959 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian actor who is perhaps best known for his role as David Bishop on the Australian soap opera Neighbours. ... Tom Long is an Australian actor. ... Patrick J. Warburton (born November 14, 1964) is an American television actor and voice artist. ... Logo of Village Roadshow Village Roadshow ASX: VRL is an Australian media company with interests in cinema, theme parks, film production and distribution. ... Warner Bros. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... is the 258th day of the year (259th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 292nd day of the year (293rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... “Moving picture” redirects here. ... The big dish The Parkes Observatory is a radio telescope observatory, 20 kilometres north of the town of Parkes, New South Wales, Australia. ...

Tagline: The first step on the moon nearly stumbled on Earth.

Plot

The radio telescope at Parkes, New South Wales, Australia, was used by NASA throughout the Apollo program to receive signals in the Southern Hemisphere, along with the NASA Honeysuckle Creek Tracking Station near Canberra. The 64 meter radio telescope at Parkes Observatory A radio telescope is a form of directional radio antenna most often used in radio astronomy and in tracking and collecting data from satellites and space probes (see Deep Space Network), and are also used in the SETI project. ... Parkes is a town with a population of approximately 10,500 (as of 2004) located in New South Wales, Australia. ... “NSW” redirects here. ... This article is about the American space agency. ... This article is about the series of human spaceflight missions. ... southern hemisphere highlighted in yellow (Antarctica not depicted). ... Canberra Deep Dish Communications Complex Honeysuckle Creek was a NASA spacecraft-tracking station near Canberra, Australia at 35°35′02″ S 148°58′37″ E from 1967 to 1981. ... For other uses, see Canberra (disambiguation). ...

The film tells a somewhat fictionalised story of three Australian technicians (Neill, Harrington, Long) and their American NASA representative (Warburton). It had been decided quite late in the planning for Apollo 11 to include a television camera to broadcast the first steps on the Moon. Due to the timing of this, Australia would be the prime receiving station. The film tells of the three dealing with a variety of problems, from a power outage wiping their computer memory, to high winds that could cause the whole telescope to collapse. After the 11 crew decide to walk immediately after landing on the Moon, Parkes thinks they have lost their chance to be the prime receiving station. But due to delays on the Moon and problems with Goldstone they achieve the distinction at the last minute. Sam Neill (born Nigel John Dermot Neill), DCNZM, OBE (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand-Australian film and television actor, and owner of the Two Paddocks winery in Central Otago. ... Kevin Harrington as David Bishop on Neighbours Kevin Harrington (born 4 September 1959 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian actor who is perhaps best known for his role as David Bishop on the Australian soap opera Neighbours. ... Tom Long is an Australian actor. ... Patrick J. Warburton (born November 14, 1964) is an American television actor and voice artist. ... The Apollo 11 mission was the first manned mission to land on the Moon. ...

Although based on true events, the film uses fictional characters and alters historical details for dramatic effect. NASA's Honeysuckle Creek and Goldstone stations both had the signal, but Parkes' signal was far superior and was used from soon after the beginning of the moon-walk. No power failure occurred, there was no friction with the NASA representatives (there were several, not just one), and Prime Minister John Gorton visited Honeysuckle Creek, not Parkes. They did however operate in very high winds, risking damage to the dish and even injury to themselves to keep the antenna pointed at the moon during the moonwalk. A fictional character is any person who appears in a work of fiction. ... Honeysuckle Creek was a NASA spacecraft-tracking station near Canberra, Australia from 1967 to 1981. ... The Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex (GDSCC) —commonly called the Goldstone Observatory— is located in Californias Mojave Desert (USA). ... Sir John Grey Gorton GCMG AC CH (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002), Australian politician, was the 19th Prime Minister of Australia. ...

Much of the film was shot on location; the "cricket match" and "hayride" scenes were indeed shot on the real dish. Researchers often postponed experiments to position the dish for photography. The set reconstructing the 1969 control room was extremely accurate, even down to small details like ashtrays. Some of the "props" were in fact original NASA equipment used during the Apollo 11 landing, left behind in Australia as too heavy to ship back. Staffers from that era expressed amazement at seeing the set; they said it was like walking into a time warp.

The Dish was written by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner, Jane Kennedy and Rob Sitch and directed by Sitch. Santo Cilauro born in Melbourne, Australia in 1962, is an Australian television and feature film producer and screenwriter. ... Tom Gleisner (born 1962) is an Australian director, producer, writer, occasional actor and author. ... DVD cover for Series 1 of Frontline. ... Rob Sitch on the left as Mike Moore Robert Ian Sitch (born March 17, 1962), is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. ...

The Parkes 64 metre radio telescope at the Parkes Observatory in New South Wales, Australia (the bigger of the two) Picture credit: CSIRO

The Parkes radio telescope. ... The Parkes radio telescope. ... The 64 meter radio telescope at Parkes Observatory A radio telescope is a form of directional radio antenna most often used in radio astronomy and in tracking and collecting data from satellites and space probes (see Deep Space Network), and are also used in the SETI project. ... The big dish The Parkes Observatory is a radio telescope observatory, 20 kilometres north of the town of Parkes, New South Wales, Australia. ... The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is the national government body for scientific research in Australia. ...

Cast

(in order of appearance)

Sam Neill (born Nigel John Dermot Neill), DCNZM, OBE (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand-Australian film and television actor, and owner of the Two Paddocks winery in Central Otago. ... For other people with the same name, see Billy Mitchell (disambiguation). ... Rosalind Hammond, often credited as Ros or Roz, is an Australian comic actress and writer. ... Beverley Dunn is an Australian actress. ... Bille Brown (born 1952 at Biloela, Queensland, Australia), studied drama at the University of Queensland. ... Kevin Harrington as David Bishop on Neighbours Kevin Harrington (born 4 September 1959 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian actor who is perhaps best known for his role as David Bishop on the Australian soap opera Neighbours. ... Tom Long is an Australian actor. ... Patrick J. Warburton (born November 14, 1964) is an American television actor and voice artist. ... Matthew Moore (January 8, 1888 – January 20, 1960) was born in Fordstown Crossroads, County Meath, Ireland. ... Denise Roberts has been working full time as a professional actor and director in theatre, film and television since 1980. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Jane Menelaus is an Australian actress. ... John Flaus (born 1934) is an Australian film academic and theorist, actor, anarchist and raconteur. ... Eliza Szonert Birthday: 1-29-1974 She was married in 1998 and has three daughters - Jade, Jarrah and Stella. ... Tayler Kane is an Australian actor. ... Neil Pigot (born December 28, 1961 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian actor, best known to audiences as Inspector Falcon-Price on Blue Heelers. ... Simon Kirwan Donaldson, born in Cambridge in 1957, is an English mathematician famous for his work on the topology of smooth (differentiable) four-dimensional manifolds. ... John McMartin is an American actor, born in Warsaw, Indiana and raised in Minnesota. ... Frank Bennett is an Australian jazz singer whose name is allegedly formed from Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. ... Charles Bud Tingwell (born January 3, 1923 in Coogee, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia)[1] [2], is an Australian film and theatre actor. ... Mal Walden is a Melbourne based journalist and television news presenter. ... Colette Mann (born 1950, in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian actress. ... Susan Ward (born Michelle Susan Ward on April 15, 1976 in Monroe, Louisiana) is an American actress and model. ...

External links

• The Dish Official Warner Bros. Website
• The Dish at the Internet Movie Database
• The Apollo 11 Story on the Parkes Observatory website
• "The Dish": Fact versus Fiction — a quick comparison
• Top five Australian feature films each year, and gross Australian box office earned that year, 1988–2005
• The Truth about The Dish

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... The big dish The Parkes Observatory is a radio telescope observatory, 20 kilometres north of the town of Parkes, New South Wales, Australia. ...

Notes

1. ^ Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.
   
2. ^ Theatrical release in Australia.